Nepali groups urge FIFA to 'make things right' for migrant workers

More than three dozen Nepali civil society groups on Thursday called on FIFA President Gianni Infantino to "stop looking the other way" while migrant workers are denied compensation after having "suffered abuses in Qatar", Amnesty International said.

The 2022 World Cup host nation, where foreigners make up the majority of the 2.9 million population, has faced intense criticism from human rights groups over its treatment of migrant workers.

The government of Qatar said its labour system was still a work in progress but denied allegations in a 2021 Amnesty report that thousands of migrant workers in the host nation were being trapped and exploited.

In the open letter to Infantino, the Nepali organizations demanded compensation for workers who they said had suffered abuse, and families who have lost loved ones.

"The stories of stolen wages and broken dreams are part of our everyday life," the letter said. "We are far too familiar with images of coffins arriving at Tribhuvan International airport.